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Interesting take on the issue.
Gary Krupp, who is Jewish, says he grew up hating the late pontiff. Now, at 62, the retired Long Island businessman is caught up in the controversy over the Vatican's effort to make Pius a saint. He says that as a Jew he's not interested in the sainthood issue ? he just wants to defend the wartime pope's reputation from "the worst character assassination of the 20th century."
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iFEG-rhoWxkteqS8TkgVKyc5mLsgD9EDU3EO0
The main thrust seems to be that the sainthood issue is about politics and not the truth. Have to love the post-modern world huh?
Interesting take on the issue.
Gary Krupp, who is Jewish, says he grew up hating the late pontiff. Now, at 62, the retired Long Island businessman is caught up in the controversy over the Vatican's effort to make Pius a saint. He says that as a Jew he's not interested in the sainthood issue ? he just wants to defend the wartime pope's reputation from "the worst character assassination of the 20th century."
One can not assassinate Pius 12ths reputation more than he did by his actions and inactions. His agreement with Hitler turned over the governance of the Catholic Bishops to Hitler. Though begged by Britain and others to denounce the Holocaust even while Jews were being marched to Auschwitz literally under his window he would not do so. Making him a Saint says more about the Church than anyone else could. Read Hitler?s Pope. The title sums that Pope up perfectly. Stockholm syndrome Jews like Krupp are not unusual.
One can not assassinate Pius 12ths reputation more than he did by his actions and inactions. His agreement with Hitler turned over the governance of the Catholic Bishops to Hitler. Though begged by Britain and others to denounce the Holocaust even while Jews were being marched to Auschwitz literally under his window he would not do so. Making him a Saint says more about the Church than anyone else could. Read Hitler?s Pope. The title sums that Pope up perfectly. Stockholm syndrome Jews like Krupp are not unusual.
I have heard that Hitler's Pope, by Cornwall, is one of the flakiest books on the subject. Instead, I would suggest Pope Pius XII and the Holocaust: Understanding the Controversy by Jos? Sanchez. The reason why I think that vociferous critics of Pius XII are walking on questionable waters is because of the way they proceed with their historical blame-game. I take issue with any analysis of the issue which attempts to judge a person's decisions based on a) modern historical scholarship which sees a much broader and clearer picture in retrospect than what was likely known at a particular point in history, and which b) does not consider the range of issues faced by historical figures, as well as their duties.One would first have to establish that a) the Catholic Pope had the responsibility to protect the Jews of Europe, b) the Pope had the means to protect them, c) speaking out would have led to their protection, d) speaking out would NOT have caused an even greater oppression of Jews and/or Catholics in Europe, and e) that Pius XII had full knowledge of the extent of the persecution of the Jews. I think some of these are taken for granted or presumed to have been one thing or another.
For what it is worth, an Italian-Jewish girl I met in college said the Vatican helped her family escape to South Africa. She never mentioned the Pope as the family's benefactor.Still, the Church has much to answer for. Cardinal Stepanic of Croatia was pro-Nazi from all I have read, and a Polish Cardinal in 1937 suggested 1/3 of Poland's Jews should convert, 1/3 should be kicked out, and 1/3 should die -- which is why several of my father's cousins emigrated pronto in 1938.I fall on the side of those who are negative about Pius XII.
In what I have learned about the subject, it is the papal interaction with the Croatian dictator during WWII which provides the biggest obstacle to Pius XII's reputation. As for individual cardinals, bishops, etc., I don't think that one can use their actions or words as solid evidence against the pope. We look back on history with a certain knowledge about papal jurisdiction and influence, but this is a knowledge based on the present-day papacy where the pope is a global figure who seemingly has responsibility for all the operations underneath him. Yet, this was not the case for much of history until the 20th century. So I think that the "chain of command" analysis of Pius XII's papacy would lead to an incorrect view of the man.
A new book, “The Pope's Jews,” examines previously-unpublished documents and accounts with people on the topic of Pope Pius XII's role during WWII. The author, who is a British Protestant, seems to challenge the John Cornwell book, Hitler's Pope, which vilified Pius XII and was published in 1999.
The Pope's Jews, which will be published next month, details how Pius gave his blessing to the establishment of safe houses in the Vatican and Europe's convents and monasteries. He oversaw a secret operation with code names and fake documents for priests who risked their lives to shelter Jews, some of whom were even made Vatican subjects.
While some of this general information does not seem to be new, what is new are the interviews with victims/families/others who had not previous given their voices beforehand, as well as information in Vatican documents that had not been published. According to the article (linked to above), the negative view of Pius XII originated in the 1960s and has prevailed until this day. Before that time, however, he was viewed favorably as having been a helper of the Jews during the war.
